Soft Weights

[jmorriss]

Have you ever considered making soft weights with sand? I use to offset the suit for freediving and am very satisfyed (for scuba I do not use belt, all the weight in the BP/W setup).

Lead is much more practical due to its higher density (~5.67x's as much as sand)

Just don't lick or knaw on the pellets and you'll be just fine

 

[ubp_sanity]

Has anyone ever tried using Tungsten as a weight material? It's denser than lead and it's much safer as well. And also really hard to work with, can't just cast it like lead. I'd assume it's also more expensive as well.

 

[captndale]

Has anyone ever tried using Tungsten as a weight material? It's denser than lead and it's much safer as well. And also really hard to work with, can't just cast it like lead. I'd assume it's also more expensive as well.

When I had a dive shop, a vendor was trying to sell me on using reclaimed tungsten as ballast. I tried some just for kicks. It is more dense than lead, but the stuff he was selling was three or four times the price of lead and was contaminated with steel. Unless encapsulated in some way it would get rust all over everything.

 

[Hatul]

I think with any LDS that is a SP dealer.
maybe they don't have it, but i'm shure they can order it for you.

I've never seen them here in the shops in US and I suspect they're only available abroad, as they're calibrated in kg.

Adam

 

[Leadking]

I looked at tungsten years ago. The specific gravity of tungsten is 19 compared to 11 for lead.

Tungsten at that time was $32 a kilo or about $14.50 a lb.

 

[BettyRubble]

Lead is much more practical due to its higher density (~5.67x's as much as sand)

Just don't lick or knaw on the pellets and you'll be just fine

That is what I was thinking . . . wear 'em, don't lick 'em. The point about pets and kids is something to consider when rinsing weights. I hadn't thought about that.

 

[Hatul]

One idea I plan to try is to copy the SP ecoweights and enclose the soft weights in sealed zip lock bags.

Adan

 

[burna]

... (By the way, lead oxide is a "salt." A salt is, by definition, an oxide of a metal.) ...

Salt? I think you mean "rust".

One idea I plan to try is to copy the SP ecoweights and enclose the soft weights in sealed zip lock bags.

Adan

Ziplock bags don't work, I've tried them. You can't get neither all on the air out or a perfect seal, so water gets in and the lead shot gets nasty after a while. Even double bagging and taping won't keep out the water. Those vacuum heat sealed food bags work I've heard, but I don't have one so haven't tried it myself.

One thing I found worked was to spray paint the lead shot. I put the shot in an old oven tray and finely sprayed it with several light coats until all of the lead is coated. It stopped the fine lead powder washing out into the tub.

I've moved away from the shot bags now back to solid weights and can't say I really miss them.

 

[BobinNC]

I have new soft weights and haven't noticed any residual dust when rinsing off, I wonder if there are different qualities of soft weights and how they are manufactured. I got a pretty good deal at $2.85/lb for my weights because my LDS was getting rid of soft weights and opting to sell only plastic coated weights. I used those for a while but when changing weights in an integrated BC the soft weights just fit much better.

 

[promocop]

this thread has to be the most boring one ever posted...who cares?